Justin Barnett Christian (born April 3, 1980) is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

former professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to c ...

. He played in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

for the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one of ...

in 2008 and the

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Y ...

in 2011 and 2012.

Career

Amateur career

Christian attended Borel Middle School in San Mateo and then attended

Aragon High School Aragon High School is a public co-educational high school in San Mateo, California. It is part of the San Mateo Union High School District (SMUHSD). It is located in San Mateo County, a large suburb just outside San Francisco. The school is accre ...

in San Mateo, California from 1995–98, where he played varsity baseball all four years for John Arents and later Mike Trimble. He began his college baseball career with two years at

Skyline College Skyline College is a public community college A community college is a type of educational institution. The term can have different meanings in different countries: many community colleges have an "open enrollment" for students who have gr ...

where he was All-Conference for both years. He took the scholarship he had earned to Auburn University in

Auburn, Alabama Auburn is a city in Lee County, Alabama, United States. It is the largest city in eastern Alabama, with a 2020 population of 76,143. It is a principal city of the Auburn-Opelika Metropolitan Area. The Auburn-Opelika, AL MSA with a population ...

, but transferred after missing most of the 2002 season with a torn labrum to Southeast Missouri State University, where he became an All-American and was voted "Newcomer of the Year." At Skyline he was a shortstop, but was moved to second base at Auburn. He was mostly an infielder at SEMO as well.

River City Rascals

After going undrafted in the 2003 Major League Baseball Draft, he signed with the

River City Rascals The River City Rascals were a professional baseball team based in O'Fallon, Missouri, in the United States. The Rascals were a member of the West Division of the Frontier League, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball. From the 1999 ...

of the

Frontier League The Frontier League is a professional independent baseball league with teams in the Northeastern and Midwestern United States and Eastern Canada. Formed in 1993, it is the oldest currently running independent league in the United States. The le ...

, winning the starting second base job and playing 30 games during the 2003 season. In the fall of 2003, he went back to Auburn as a student assistant coach while trying to set up scout workouts; he set up several of these but was unsuccessful in getting signed. He returned to the Rascals for the 2004 season, where he hit .450 with 26 steals in 30 games.

New York Yankees

The

signed him sight unseen. In 2004, he played on the

GCL Yankees The Florida Complex League Yankees are a Rookie-level affiliate of the New York Yankees, competing in the Florida Complex League of Minor League Baseball. The team is composed mainly of players who are in their first year of professional baseball ...

and the

Staten Island Yankees The Staten Island Yankees were a minor league baseball team located in the New York City borough of Staten Island from 1999 to 2020. Nicknamed the "Baby Bombers", the Yankees were the Class A Short Season affiliate of the New York Yankees and pla ...

. He started the 2005 season with the

Charleston RiverDogs The Charleston RiverDogs are a Minor League Baseball team of the Carolina League. They are located in Charleston, South Carolina, and are the Single-A affiliate of the Tampa Bay Rays. The RiverDogs' home stadium is Joseph P. Riley Jr. Park. Hi ...

, where he hit .290 and was promoted to the

Tampa Yankees Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and the seat of Hillsborough C ...

, where he hit .306. He ended the season with a combined 55 stolen bases. In , Christian hit .276 with six

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...

s, 43 RBI and 68 stolen bases, third in all of the minor leagues. He started the season with the Double-A

Trenton Thunder The Trenton Thunder are a collegiate summer baseball team of the MLB Draft League. They are located in Trenton, New Jersey, and play their home games at Trenton Thunder Ballpark. From 1994 to 2020, it was a Minor League Baseball team of the ...

, batting .235 with three home runs, 32 RBI and 18 stolen bases. On June 22, 2007, he was called up to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre where he hit .325, and .271 overall, for the year. On June 24, , he was promoted to the Yankees' major league roster preceding their interleague series with the Pittsburgh Pirates. He started the same day, going 2-for-4 with a

double A double is a look-alike or doppelgänger; one person or being that resembles another. Double, The Double or Dubble may also refer to: Film and television * Double (filmmaking), someone who substitutes for the credited actor of a character * ...

and two RBI in his major league debut. On July 8, 2008, he stole his first base in the major leagues, stealing third base off

Tampa Bay Rays The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since its inception, the team's home v ...

relief pitcher

Grant Balfour Grant Robert Balfour (born 30 December 1977) is an Australian former professional baseball relief pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Minnesota Twins, Milwaukee Brewers, Tampa Bay Devil Rays / Rays, and Oakland Athletics. ...

and catcher

Dioner Navarro Dioner Favian Navarro Vivas (born February 9, 1984) is a Venezuelan former professional baseball catcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Yankees, Los Angeles Dodgers, Tampa Bay Rays, Cincinnati Reds, Chicago Cubs, Ch ...

. The only two times he was caught stealing, he had fallen down between first and second base or had been leading far off first. Following the 2008 season, Christian was non-tendered by the Yankees, making him a free agent.

Baltimore Orioles

He was signed to a minor league contract by the Baltimore Orioles on January 13, .

Second Stint with Yankees

On May 7, 2010, he was re-signed by the Yankees while playing for the

Southern Maryland Blue Crabs The Southern Maryland Blue Crabs are an American professional baseball team based in Waldorf, Maryland. They are members of the North Division of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball, an independent "partner league" of Major League Baseb ...

in the independent Atlantic League, and was assigned to the Double-A

, where he broke Kevin Thompson's franchise record for stolen bases and was re-promoted to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on September 6.

San Francisco Giants

On February 5, 2011, Christian signed a minor league contract with the reigning World Series champion

. On September 6, 2011, the Giants purchased his contract and he was called up to the major league squad. Christian started 2012 with Triple-A

Fresno Fresno () is a major city in the San Joaquin Valley of California, United States. It is the county seat of Fresno County and the largest city in the greater Central Valley region. It covers about and had a population of 542,107 in 2020, maki ...

, and ended up splitting the season with them and the Giants. With Fresno, he hit .343/.409/.508 with seven home runs, 35 RBI and 12 stolen bases. With San Francisco, he hit .125/.197/.143 with 2 RBI and two stolen bases. Christian won a World Series ring as a member of the 2012 Giants.

St. Louis Cardinals

On November 26, 2012, Christian signed a minor league deal with the

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals ha ...

with an invitation to spring training. He was projected to be starting outfielder for the Cardinals Triple-A

Memphis Redbirds The Memphis Redbirds are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals. They are located in Memphis, Tennessee, and are named for their Major League Baseball affiliate. The Redbir ...

affiliate.

Tampa Bay Rays

Christian signed a minor league deal with the

on January 14, 2014.

Quintana Roo Tigres

Christian also played with Tigres baseball team in Cancun, Mexico.

Life after baseball

Christian is currently a Deputy Sheriff with the

Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office The Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office is a local law enforcement agency that serves Santa Clara County, California. It provides general-service law enforcement to unincorporated areas of Santa Clara County, as well as incorporated cities withi ...

San Jose, California San Jose, officially San José (; ; ), is a major city in the U.S. state of California that is the cultural, financial, and political center of Silicon Valley and largest city in Northern California by both population and area. With a 2020 popu ...

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Christian, Justin 1980 births Living people American expatriate baseball players in Mexico Auburn Tigers baseball players Baseball players from Nebraska Cañeros de Los Mochis players Charleston RiverDogs players Columbus Clippers players Diablos Rojos del México players Durham Bulls players Fresno Grizzlies players Gulf Coast Yankees players Major League Baseball outfielders Memphis Redbirds players Mexican League baseball center fielders Mexican League baseball left fielders New York Yankees players Norfolk Tides players Richmond Flying Squirrels players River City Rascals players San Francisco Giants players Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees players Southern Maryland Blue Crabs players Sportspeople from Lincoln, Nebraska Staten Island Yankees players Tampa Yankees players Tigres de Quintana Roo players Trenton Thunder players